Tonguing and grooving machine



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM WATSON, OF CHICAGO,

ILLINOIS.

TONGUING- AND GROOVING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 9,524, dated January 4, 1853.

To all 'Lv/wm t may concern.'

Be it known that I, WILLIAM VVATsoN, of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for Tonguing and Grooving Lumber, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had` to the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specification, and in which- Figure 1 is a plan of my improved arrangement of cutters for tonguing and grooving boards. Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section at the line X X of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal section illustrative of the tonguing cutters taken at the line :li: :,tt of Fig. 1. Fig. 4L is a similar view illustrating the grooving cutters taken through the line S S of Fig. l; and Fig. 5 represents a view in perspective of the draw knives of the grooving apparatus, separated and placed side by side.

I have represented in the drawings only so much of the machine as is necessary to illustrate the construction and operation of the tonguing and grooving knives, which are mounted in two stocks which I call respectively the tonguing stock and the grooving stock. The board to be matched by passing between the planes in the position represented in the drawing by the arrow is forced or drawn along stationary ways (a a) by any of the well known feeding mechanisms. One way (a) forming part of the grooving stock (A) which carries the grooving planes that operate on one Vedge parallel to and on the same level as the opposite way (a) and serves to support the edge of the board on whichV the tongue is to be formed which may be further guided or held thereon by anti-friction rollers (r) running in the inside of the tonguing stock (B) that carries the tonguing knives and gouges for cutting the opposite edge of the board. The stock (A) may be gaged to different distances from the parallel stock (B), to accommodate various widths of boards, by sliding and setting it on the crossways (b), on a fixed bed, plate or bench (c) that serves to support both sets of planer stocks (A and B). The tonguing stock (B) is secured to the bed (C) on the outside of the way (a). Both stocks are stationary when adjusted to their required position v-on the bed (C), and the board is tongued on one of the board, while the other way (a) is edge and simultaneously grooved on the other, as it passes along the ways (a af) in the direction of the arrow, Fig. 1, by draw knives and chisels fitted to the stocks (A and B). The forms and arrangements of these several cutters are as follows: Slots or mortises (c c and d) are cut in the stock for securing the tonguing gouges and knives therein, so that the said'knives and gouges shall project at suitable angles into the edge of the board for the formation of the tongue. The draw knives (e e f f) lie respectively in vertical and horizontal planes, one horizontal knife (c) and one vertical knife forming a pair, and having their edges converging toward each other at the base of the tongue, one knife cutting down the side, and th-e other the shoulder of the tongue, by a drawing cut, while the gouges remove the surplus wood between the draw knives so that the latter has only to trim and smooth the sides. The front extremities of the cutting edges of the knives (f f) that cut the two shoulders of the tongue are separated far enough to receive a board between them, their edges are straight and gradually approach one another toward their back extremities where the two knives are barely the thickness of the tongue apart: the knives (c c) which form the sides of the tongue, lie in parallel horizontal planes at the distance of the thickness of the reuired tongue apart, with their front cutting extremities at the distance, or nearly so, of the depth of t-he tongue from the vertical plane in which the knives (f 7U) lie, while their cutting edges as they recede, gradually approach the said vertical plane till their back cutting extremities lie in or slightly overlap it. These knives (e e and 7 f) may be made of any desired length to smooth and trim the tongue for any number of gouges, and they should be so fixed to the stock that they can be adjusted to cut a greater or less depth according tothe thickness of the tongue and depth of the shoulder to be cut. The vertical knives (f f) may be held, for instance, by screws fitting through slots in them so that they may be brought closer or farther apart, while the horizontal knives (e 6) which are somewhat shorter in order that their back cutting extremities may protrude beyond the edges of the knives (f f) without meet-ing them in order to cut the angles out clean and smooth. They may be adjusted from the back by a set screw (i) .which should act against a follower (7c) to set up simultaneously the two knives (e e) that are held together by screwing them to an intervening block (Z), the thickness of which may also be varied to adjust the cut to an enlarged or reduced thickness of tongue; any other suitable arrangement for adjusting both these, may be adopted. The cutting edges of these knives are beveled or sharpened from their outside faces soA that they will out the backs and sides of the tongue at right angles to one another and form a clean shoulder. With these knives (e e and f f), for cutting the shoulH ders and sides of the tongue, there are two, three or more upper, and a corresponding number of lower gouges (g and it); each series of gouges are placed in the angle between one pair of the draw knives at an inclination to the angle formed by the meeting of the side and shoulder of the tongue of say 45".

The gouges of each series may be placed at any suitable dist-ance apart behind each other and are set in an inclined position with their cutting edges, pointed toward that end of the stock at which the board enters. They are secured to the stock by screws which pass through slot-s in them into the stock and admit of them being adjusted to any required depth of cut. These gouges are set so as to cut successively deeper, the front one of either series cut a shaving of considerable breadth, while each succeeding back one cuts a less breadth, the back gouge of either set cutting nearly as deep as the knives (ee f f) will allow it to enter between them without projecting beyond the verticalplane of the knives (f f) or .the horizontal plane ofthe knives (e e),

they being thus regularly arranged, as regards breadth and depth of cut, one behind the other, so that they will act gradually and in unison with the knives (e and f) in the formation of the tongue as the board is pushed along between them. The knives (e and f) enter into the wood very gradually. The gouge in the meantime following them up removes the surplus wood while they increase the depth of their cut unt-il their back extremities cut a little beyond the required breadth of the tongue and depth of the shoulders in order that they may form a clean finish at the back angle of the tongue, while the gouges prevent the knives from being strained by scoring out first a little and afterward more, as the board passes from the vfront toward the back gouges, while the penetration of the edges of the knives into the wood on either side of the gouges divides the wood to be removed, and supports that which is to remain, so well, that the gouges can take a rank cut without danger of breaking or tearing the wood so that the operation may be forced rapidly, while the work is sure to be smooth and true.7 The operation of tonguing may thus be performed by but a small expenditure of labor, by reason of the gradual nature of the cut which in proportion as the length of the knives and number of gouges are increased will be rendered still easier; while the tongue formed is clean and perfect. The knives alone thus arranged would form the tongue but the gouges serve to relieve the knives by reducing the timber on the side and above them so that their shavings will readily fall clear of them, instead of the intermediate wood being compressed by the knives, and throwing friction on them. Simultaneously with the operation of tonguing one edge of the board, its opposite edge is grooved by upper and lower knives in pairs (m) and intermediate gouges (n), arranged horizontally, one behind. the other, and either pair of knives and its succeeding gouge, consecutively projecting deeper into the wood, that is to say, the front pair of knives project only so that on their rst entrance they simply mark out as it were the breadthof the groove, while the next pair cut deeper, and so on, to the last pair which project to the depth of the groove, and the same gradually increasing cut is given to the gouges'the first of which cuts but slight-ly into the edge of the board While the last one, which may be broader on the face `to plane or clear out the back of the groove, enters the board to the required depth of the groove. The knives are in this instance duplex consisting of a right and left hand cutter each beveled on its lower and back inner side so as to form a sharp cutting edge on each, on the outside lower corner, which edges are designed to cut down the sides of the grooves, while the wood is removed from the middle by the gouges. These knives are bolted together in pairs, their beveled or sharpened edges being innermost and each pair is of the same thickness as the required breadth of the groove; thus united in pairs or halves, they are attached to the stock by a screw passing through a slot in them, which allows them to be adjusted as required to the depth of the groove to be formed the sides of which they are designed to trim and plane smooth. The front corners (o) of these knives are rounded, and their cutting edges slightly inclining backward into the board, for the purpose of giving them a gradual and easy entrance into the wood and a drawing cut, while the intermediate gouges (n) are set with their cutting edges pointing toward the front end of the stock. These are secured to the stock by screws so as to be adjustedlto any required depth. The points of the gouges enter between the upper and lower knife of each pair, except in the case of the last or finishing gouge, the front broad point of which is in this instance flush with the back edge of the last pair, in order that it may clear `out the cutting left by the knives, its broad face or front point serving to scrape clear the back of the groove. The reducing gouges (n) perform a similar office wit-h respect to the knives (m) to that effected by the gouges (g and It) in the tonguing plane, by removing the surplus wood the instant it is detached from the sides of the groove by the knives (m) While the latter protect the board at the sides of the grooves from being torn, broken, or splintered by the action o the gouges.

The foregoing are two of the modes in which I have reduced the principle of my invention to practice, but it is obvious that it may be varied in a great number of Ways without in the least departing from the principle upon which it operates, for eX- ample a number of pairs of the side cutters or draw knives might be arranged to precede each other in a gradually converging series so as to do all the cutting, and reducing without the aid of gouges, or chisels might be used instead of gouges, and the side cutters might be extended the whole length of the board; rotating cutters or saws may also be used for removing the surplus wood, instead of chisels or gouges.

I-Iaving thus described my improvements in tonguing and grooving machines, what I claim therein as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The method substantially as herein described of tonguing and grooving boards by means of knives arranged in the plane of the sides of the tongues or grooves, with their cutting edges inclined toward their rear extremities so as to cut gradually deeper and deeper as the board passes them when in combination with cutting instruments arranged between these side knives, to reduce or remove the surplus wood which is severed by them, substantially as herein speciied.

In testimony whereo1 I have hereunto subscribed my name.

WM. WATSON. Witnesses:

F. A. How, JAS. ELL 

